Hamilton ready to play T-ball

Josh Hamilton, the American League MVP in 2010, will start swinging a bat Wednesday, three weeks after he suffered a small fracture of the humerus in his right arm. Hamilton will swing at a ball on a tee.

The development comes a week earlier than the Rangers' original diagnosis after the April 12 injury. The club thought Hamilton would go a month before being able to swing a bat. While the team is encouraged, general manager Jon Daniels said the Rangers aren't deviating off the original plan that called for Hamilton to probably miss six to eight weeks.

"Everything's gone according to plan so far," Daniels said. "Josh is in a good state of mind, and the arm continues to get better. He'll keep progressing with the rehab that (team physician Keith Meister) and (head athletic trainer Jamie Reed) laid out. It's too early to narrow down a date for his return, but we're definitely heading in a good direction, and it's reasonable to assume he'll be back within the original timeframe."

The Rangers could really use Hamilton's bat in their lineup right now. The offense has struggled without him. A team that was 9-1 at the time of the injury has gone just 7-13 without him, through Tuesday's 4-3 loss at Seattle.